Buffalo Sabres Daily Press Clips March 6, 2014 Sabres start rebuilding after busy day of trades By John Wawrow Associated Press March 5, 2014 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Sabres general manager Tim Murray completed dismantling the aging core of Buffalo's roster with a flurry of moves made before the NHL trade deadline Wednesday. Now he can focus his attention on rebuilding the league's worst team from scratch. "The start of the building for me was on Friday," Murray said, referring to a stunning trade in which he sent goalie Ryan Miller and captain Steve Ott to St. Louis. "And today was a continuation of it. But there's still a lot of building to do." The first-time GM was so busy that he had difficulty telling what time it was by the time he could address reporters after swinging three trades involving 10 players, four draft picks, and also claiming forward Cory Conacher off waivers. "I think it's a good day," Murray said. "I think the combination of picks that we added and young players that we've added gives us a ton of ammunition now going into the draft." The trades came at a time with the Sabres (18-35-8) in last place, and in a state of disarray after Saturday, when Pat LaFontaine abruptly resigned as president of hockey operations a little over three months after taking over. Murray, who was hired by LaFontaine in January, has since assumed his former boss's duties and attempted to instill focus and direction to a team rebuilding through youth. "I don't want to say 'change the culture,' because that makes it sound like there was something wrong with it here," Murray said. "I'm trying to establish a certain culture, and that's you earn what you get. ... We have to create inner competition." The key deal was Murray's first of the day, when he traded defenseman Brayden McNabb, prospect forward Jonathan Parker and two second-round picks to Los Angeles. In exchange, the Sabres landed what Murray regarded as two promising prospects, forwards Hudson Fasching and Nicolas Deslauriers. Fasching, listed at 6-foot-2 and 213 pounds, is currently in his freshman season at Minnesota, where he is third on the team with 27 points (12 goals, 15 assists) in 31 games. Deslauriers, a converted defenseman, has 18 goals and 21 assists in 60 games in his first AHL season with Manchester. For Murray, the two were valuable enough for him to give up a pair of draft picks (a second-round pick this year, and another one in 2016), which is not something he was anticipating to do. "We need young players at every position," Murray said. "The two forwards we got back are heavy skilled forwards that we hope going forward are a big part of what we are." The Sabres then dealt forwards Matt Moulson and Cody McCormick to Minnesota in exchange for forward Torrey Mitchell and two second-round picks (2014 and '16). They also traded goalie Jaroslav Halak to Washington for goalie Michal Neuvirth and defenseman Rostislav Klesla. Moulson and Halak, who was acquired in the Miller trade, were expendable because both were in the final years of their contracts and unlikely to re-sign with Buffalo. Mitchell and Neuvirth both have one year left on their contracts, allowing the Sabres an opportunity to determine whether they fit in the team's long-term plans. And then there was the addition of Conacher, who was claimed a day after being placed on waivers by Ottawa. It marked a homecoming for the second-year player, who spent his four-year college career playing for Canisius in Buffalo, and grew up in nearby Burlington, Ontario. At 5-foot-8 and 175 pounds, Conacher is an under-sized forward who had a promising rookie season last year, when he had 11 goals and 18 assists in 47 games split between Tampa Bay and Ottawa. He has had difficulty fitting in with the Senators this year, with four goals and 16 assists in 60 games. Murray is familiar with Conacher, as he was the Senators assistant GM before being hired by the Sabres. And Murray said Conacher has the potential to fit what he's attempting to build in Buffalo. "His work ethic is terrific, and so is his character. So I want competition," Murray said. "I want one of our draft picks to say that they're (unhappy) that we went and got Cory Conacher. That's how you create competition." LA Kings get D McNabb from Sabres, shuffle roster Associated Press March 5, 2014 EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Kings acquired defenseman Brayden McNabb from the Buffalo Sabres in a trade involving multiple prospects Wednesday. The Sabres sent McNabb, forward Jonathan Parker and two second-round draft picks to the Kings for forwards Hudson Fasching and Nicolas Deslauriers. The Kings then sent forward Linden Vey to the minors to clear salary cap space on the big-league roster for forward Marian Gaborik, acquired in a deadline trade with Columbus. Los Angeles also signed promising goalie Patrik Bartosak to a three-year entry- level contract. McNabb is expected to join the Kings' AHL affiliate in Manchester, but general manager Dean Lombardi sees a major role for the tough-nosed defenseman in Los Angeles in the near future. McNabb has played in 37 games for Buffalo since late 2011, recording one goal and seven assists. He has played 12 games for the Sabres this season and 38 for their AHL affiliate in Rochester. "Given where our team was at, it was going to be at some point critical to get a young defenseman who has a chance to play in your top four," Lombardi said. "He's closer to being ready than if I had to go after a kid who was still in junior." Lombardi also said part of McNabb's game is being "overaggressive," but the GM likes that: "You'd rather tame a lion than paint stripes on a kitty cat." Fasching was a fourth-round pick by the Kings last summer. The freshman forward at Minnesota has 12 goals and 15 assists in 31 games. Deslauriers was a third-round pick in 2009 who moved from defenseman to left wing this season in Manchester for his first professional season. He has a team- leading 18 goals and 21 assists in 60 games for the Monarchs. The Kings also acquired minor-league forward James Livingston from San Jose at the deadline for a seventh-round pick in 2016. Capitals get G Halak from Sabres for G Neuvirth By Howard Fendrich Associated Press March 5, 2014 ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Four years ago, Jaroslav Halak shut down Alex Ovechkin's top-seeded Washington Capitals in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Now the Capitals hope the goalie will help them reach the postseason. Bringing aboard a player whose name conjures bad memories for the franchise, the Capitals acquired Halak from the Buffalo Sabres in a swap of goalies at the NHL trade deadline Wednesday. The Capitals sent backup goalie Michal Neuvirth and defenseman Rostislav Klesla to Buffalo, which only acquired Halak last Friday in a deal with the St. Louis Blues. Washington picked up Klesla from the Phoenix Coyotes on Tuesday. The Capitals, just outside the playoff picture at the moment, also received a 2015 third-round draft pick in the trade with Buffalo, which is last in the NHL with 44 points. Halak starred for Montreal in the 2010 playoffs, when the eighth-seeded Canadiens came back from a 3-1 deficit to stun the Presidents' Trophy-winning Capitals in seven games. Over the last three games, Halak stopped 131 of 134 shots, including 41 of 42 in a 2-1 victory in Game 7. "He's played well in Montreal. He's played well in St. Louis. And we hope he can come here and play well," Capitals general manager George McPhee said. "He's a good goalie, and he can get hot." McPhee said Halak — who can become a free agent after the season — and Braden Holtby will split time at goalie as Washington tries to avoid missing the playoffs for the first time since 2007. "Both guys'll start games," McPhee said. "We'll see where it goes." The Capitals entered Wednesday 10th in the Eastern Conference; the top eight teams make the postseason. Ovechkin tops the NHL with 43 goals, and Nicklas Backstrom is third with 48 assists. But Washington's defense has been a real problem: Only five of the other 29 teams have allowed more goals. McPhee said none of the available defensemen "moved the needle." So that led him to the 28-year-old Halak, who went 24-9-4 with a 2.23 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage in 40 games with the Blues this season. In eight NHL seasons with Montreal and St. Louis, he's appeared in 260 games, going 139-81- 26 with a 2.38 GAA and a .917 save percentage. Halak was in uniform for only one game with Buffalo. On Sunday, he was asked about the possibility of getting traded again. "I mean, anything can happen from now on," Halak said. "We've got three more days before the trade deadline. We'll see." Holtby is 19-13-3 with a 2.94 GAA and a .911 save percentage with Washington this season. "We love Braden Holtby. Love his talent, love his character, love the way he battles," McPhee said.